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<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\nTHE COFFEE TABLE \u2013 Released as La Mesita del Comedor<\/em>\nin its homeland of Spain, this foreign-language feature combines horror and\ndark comedy. The story follows a bickering couple struggling to stay together.\nWhen a newborn arrives, they believe the baby will give them something to focus\non and help fix their problems. But after a furniture salesman convinces the\nhusband to purchase a new coffee table and guarantees it will improve their\nlives, things immediately go south. Horrible events follow the purchase.\nCritics on this part of the continent enjoyed the picture. A small number found\nthe film too disturbing and unpleasant to watch, eventually giving up on it.\nHowever, the majority called it an extremely uncomfortable and\nanxiety-provoking effort that was also strangely compelling. For the time\nbeing, this is a DVD-only release. It stars David Pareja and Estefan\u00eda de los\nSantos.<\/p>\n\n\n\n DOUBLE DOWN SOUTH \u2013 Keno-Pool is a billiards game that\ninvolves gambling and collecting points based on pool balls landing on specific\ngrooves of a board placed on a pool table. This drama follows a new female\nplayer who convinces a veteran to train her as she takes part in an illegal\ncompetition. The pair take aim at the world champion and find themselves in\nmore and more danger as the games heat up. The press responded well to this\nindependent effort. A couple of voices described it as slow-moving and overlong.\nRegardless, most were impressed by the cast and thought that it was an\ninteresting, gritty gambling tale involving a lesser known but intriguing game.\nThis is currently a DVD-only exclusive and won\u2019t be available immediately on\nother formats. The cast includes Kim Coates, Lili Simmons, Igby Rigney, Tow\nBower and Justin Michael McManus.<\/p>\n\n\n\n HALF-BAKED: TOTALLY HIGH \u2013 26 years after the release of the\n1998 cult comedy Half-Baked<\/em>, it appears as though a sequel is finally\narriving (it is also known as Half Baked 2<\/em> in some territories). This is\na direct-to-disc follow-up featuring a mostly new cast. After their friend dies\nsmoking a strange and powerful mixture of weed, two stoner pals (who may be\nrelated to the original film\u2019s leads) set out to raise funds to get the body\nhome for burial. They find a new strain and set out to sell it for cash,\ndrawing the ire of a drug lord. This title is premiering on disc and absolutely\none has seen this film yet. Viewers might be wise to hold off for now and wait\nfor some reviews to come. It features Dexter Darden, Joel Courtney, Ramona\nYoung, Frankie Muntz, David Koechner, Harland Williams and Rachel True (who\nalso appeared in the original).<\/p>\n\n\n\n THE INVISIBLE FIGHT \u2013 International cinema fans may be\ncurious about this foreign-language action comedy from Estonia. Set in 1973, a\nguard working on the USSR-China border becomes obsessed with kung-fu fighters\nhe can see training on the other side of the border. He discovers a group of\nmonks who agree to secretly help him learn martial arts. Of course, his life is\nput at risk as he gains skills and attempts to use them to right wrongs.\nReaction towards this title was slightly more positive than negative. Almost\nhalf stated that after an amusing beginning, the film\u2019s repetitive gags became\ntiring and that the movie overstayed its welcome. Yet slightly more called the\nmovie enjoyably weird, suggesting that it was earnest in its love of kung-fu\nmovies and delivered some entertainingly surreal moments. Ursel Tilk, Kaarel\nPogga and Ester Kuntu headline the picture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n THE LAST KINGDOM: SEVEN KINGS MUST DIE \u2013 Also known simply\nas Seven Kings Must Die<\/em>, this period Viking story is actually a\nfeature-length finale to the Netflix series The Last Kingdom<\/em> (which ran\nfor five seasons). The show is set in the 800s and follows an invasion of\nEngland by Viking forces. This film begins when Edward, King of the\nAnglo-Saxons, falls ill. Norse forces begin encroaching and there is tension\nbetween the sickly leader\u2019s sons over who will take the throne. The series\nprotagonist comes out of retirement to help fulfill a strange prophecy that\nwill impact the future of the nation. Reaction was decent overall toward the\nfinale. One-fifth of reviewers thought the story was overstuffed and choppy,\nleaving them ambivalent about the ending. However, the consensus was that the\nperformances were strong, the level of tension was consistently high, and that\nfans of the show would be pleased. It stars Alexander Dreymon, Mark Rowley,\nArnas Fedaravicius, Rod Hallett, Harry Gilby and Ross Anderson. <\/p>\n\n\n\n MISTER SLEEP \u2013 After murdering 65 people, a serial killer\nnicknamed \u201cMister Sleep\u201d is arrested and faces execution. Somehow, he appears\nto return after being put to death. The villain sets out on a murderous\nrampage, targeting a virtual therapy group of insomniacs. As it turns out, a\nfew of these figures have direct connections to those who put the title figure\nto death. It appears that this independent horror film was recently released on\nstreaming site and is now appearing on disc. Unfortunately, no critics have\nseen the feature yet. There are a couple of reasonably positive notices from\npeople who paid to screen the movie, but that\u2019s all so far. Those curious will\nhave to go it alone to find out if it\u2019s effectively nightmarish or just a\nnightmare to watch. The cast includes Kate Dailey, Robert Hollocks, Ashley\nTerpstra, Claire Marie Lubeck, John Grove, Bronsonn Taylor and Roger Dorsey.<\/p>\n\n\n\n THE PEASANTS \u2013 Set in the late 19th<\/sup> century, this animated feature from Poland tells the story of a poor young woman living in a village. The lead\u2019s mother offers her hand in marriage to a much older, wealthy man. However, a young gentleman who desires the lead decides to fight to be with her. The two lovers come up with a plot to unite themselves, but tensions also arise between them. In the end, the lady is forced to make a choice that will determine her ultimate fate. This Polish-language picture from the makers of the Oscar-nominated title Loving Vincent<\/em> won numerous awards across Europe. In North America, reaction was more positive than negative, but slightly muted. Slightly more than one-third of write-ups complained that the story was melodramatic and the striking visuals (live footage of actors was turned into animation) was an unnecessary distraction. Still, a larger number describe it as a beautifully accomplished story about a character enduring a patriarchal society.<\/p>\n\n\n\n THE PROCURATOR \u2013 After a wealthy businessman is brutally\nmurdered, the evidence points to a university professor. She is put on trial\nwith prosecutors insisting that the crime was an act of revenge because the\nentrepreneur raped one of her students. But as a lawyer investigates the\nslaying, she unearths hidden secrets and connections that may prove others to\nbe guilty. This Chinese feature comes from Alan Mak, who is most famous for\nhaving directed the Infernal Affairs<\/em> movies (which were remade in the US\nas the Oscar-winning Martin Scorsese film The Departed<\/em>). Only a select\nnumber of critics in this part of the world have seen it. So far, all reviews\nare reasonable but restrained. They all assert that this is a decent\ncourtroom\/crime mystery with good performances, but nothing that is overly\nmemorable to give it a lasting impact. It features Baihe Bai, Johnny Huang\nJingyu and Likun Wang.<\/p>\n\n\n\n REVENGE OF THE EMPIRE OF THE APES \u2013 Enjoy no-budget,\ndirect-to-disc genre films? If so, then you\u2019re likely familiar with the work of\nMark Polonia, whose credits include Shark Encounters of the Third Kind<\/em>\nand the recent Cocaine Shark<\/em> (among many other titles you likely haven\u2019t\nheard of). This one has been available to stream for a while and is now\narriving on disc. It features a pair of violent humanoid apes from another\nplanet looking for revenge on the aliens who sentenced them to death. They\nescape from their prison and do battle with enemies. So far, there are only a\nfew reviews available for the film from online genre critics. They write that\nit\u2019s exactly what you\u2019d expect, including a choppy story and terrible effects.\nApparently, it will only amuse those already familiar with the moviemaker\u2019s\neccentric work. Jamie Morgan and Tim Hatch headline the picture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n WALDEN \u2013 An introverted court stenographer in a small town\nspends his days taking down details about horrific murder trials. He\u2019s used to\nhearing innocent and guilty defendants. One day, the lead receives word that he\nhas a terminal illness and little time left. After finishing up a case\ninvolving a child murderer who gets off on a technicality, he decides that with\nnothing to lose, he should deal out punishment himself. He starts hunting down\nthe figure and others who have slipped through the criminal justice system. So\nfar, this title has only received a few professional reviews, but they have\nbeen upbeat. Both suggest that while the tone is inconsistent, the lead\nperformance is solid and the end result is an interesting and eccentric\nvigilante picture. The cast includes Emile Hirsch, Shane West, Kelli Garner,\nTania Raymonde and David Keith.<\/p>\n\n\n\n BLASTS FROM THE PAST!<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n A few interesting titles are receiving high definition\nupgrades this week. Criterion is presenting the Hungarian tale Werckmeister\nHarmonies<\/em> (2000) in a 4K Ultra HD and Blu-ray combo edition and as a\nstandalone Blu-ray. The foreign-language film follows a circus that arrives in\na small town, drawing visitors in and slowly driving them insane. Obviously,\nthe presentation features a Bela Tarr co-director approved 4K restoration of\nthe film, as well as Family Nest<\/em> (1979), which is the first feature from\nTarr. There is also a new interview with the co-director, a trailer and an\nessay on the movie.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Paramount is presenting the Jack Ryan Ultimate 5-Movie\nCollection<\/em>, a set containing 4K Ultra HD disc and Blu-rays of all the\nmovies in the series. It was released previously in 2018, but is getting put\nback out to tie in with the release of the recent Ryan TV-series. You\u2019ll get The\nHunt for Red October<\/em> (1990), Patriot Games<\/em> (1992), Clear and\nPresent Danger<\/em> (1994), The Sum of All Fears<\/em> (2002) and Jack Ryan:\nShadow Recruit<\/em> (2014) all with the best possible picture quality. Over the\nyears, several actors have portrayed the well-known hero, including Alec\nBaldwin in the original, Harrison Ford in the first two follow-ups, as well as\nBen Affleck and Chris Pine in the most recent prequel\/reboot. It comes with\nseveral extras (like featurettes and the occasional commentary track) that were\npresent on previous releases.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The French action\/comedy Taxi <\/em>(1998) is arriving on Blu-ray from Samuel Goldwyn Films. It involves a young Marseilles taxi driver. After being fined for speeding and finding his livelihood in jeopardy, he gets an unusual fare in the form of a police inspector who can\u2019t drive. The young man is asked to help the officer chase down a team of German bank robbers through the city streets. This picture was written by Luc Besson (La Femme Nikita, Leon, The Fifth Element<\/em>), featured incredible stunt driving sequences and was a huge hit in France. Four sequels followed as well as a 2004 US remake with Queen Latifa and Jimmy Fallon (and a poorly received 2015 TV adaptation for North America called Taxi Brooklyn<\/em>). Now you can see the original hit that inspired them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The Shout! Select Blu-ray line is putting out a Blu-ray of\nthe critically acclaimed drama Affliction<\/em> (1997) from writer\/director\nPaul Schrader (Auto Focus, First Reformed<\/em>). The plot involves a\npsychologically troubled small-town cop investigating a suspicious hunting\ndeath. It stars Nick Nolte, Sissy Spacek, James Coburn (who won a Best\nSupporting Actor Oscar for the picture) and Willem Dafoe. The movie is\npresented with a new 2K scan from the original film elements.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Sony is releasing City of Hope<\/em> (1991) on Blu-ray.\nThis well-received crime\/drama from writer\/director John Sayles (Matewan,\nEight Men Out<\/em>, The Secret of Roan Inish, Lone Star, Men with Guns,\nSunshine State<\/em>) revolves around various developers, criminal enterprises\nand government officials making deals to demolish and redevelop an aging\napartment block.<\/p>\n\n\n\n And the distributor is also releasing You\u2019ll Never Get\nRich<\/em> (1941) on Blu-ray. It is an Oscar-nominated musical with Rita Hayworth\nand Fred Astaire featuring music by Cole Porter. <\/p>\n\n\n\n YOU KNOW, FOR KIDS!<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Unfortunately, nothing this week but next week should\ndeliver more titles.<\/p>\n\n\n\n ON THE TUBE!<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n And below is a list of all the latest TV-related releases.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Devil\u2019s Peak<\/em>: Year 1 (BBC) DVD<\/p>\n\n\n\n The Last Kingdom: Seven Kings Must Die<\/em> (2023 finale\nto The Last Kingdom<\/em> TV series) (Universal) Blu-ray<\/p>\n\n\n\n Star Trek: Lower Decks<\/em>: Season 4 (Paramount) Blu-ray<\/p>\n\n\n\n Tom Clancy\u2019s Jack Ryan<\/em>: The Complete Series\n(Paramount) 4K Ultra HD and Blu-ray or Blu-ray only<\/p>\n\n\n\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.cinemastance.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/DVD-Double-Down-South-fixed.jpg\")
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